Cambodia Collected Over 7,000 M Tons of Rice in 2009

The Minister continued to say that these rice products were collected from about three million hectares of lands including over 2.33 million hectares of rainy season and 358,956 hectares of dry seasons throughout the Kingdom of Cambodia.

“My ministry is very pleased with our Cambodian farmers’ hard work and their rice products in 2009,” he said. “We have over two million tons of rice products if compared to the balance our food during a year and if we calculate as rice products it equals over three million tons of rice increased in 2009,” he added.

The Minister called on and encouraged the Cambodian farmers to continue their hard work and planting all kinds of rice and crops in their lands so that they will be able to sell out their products to make more money to support their families and to contribute to the economic growth and development in Cambodia in the future.

Teng Lao, Secretary of State at MoAFF, said that the Royal Government of Cambodia, under the leadership of Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, has issued the second phase of the strategic rectangular policy to provide the prioritized sector to agriculture to generate economic growth and poverty reductions in Cambodia.

The main objective of MoAFF’s work s and activities are to work hard for collecting and using all its means to develop the agricultural sector in order to contribute to the economic growth, progress and development in the Kingdom of Cambodia.

To promote the farmers’ activities for rice product in the future, Teng Lao said his ministry will find out appropriated production methods in accordance with real locations and market requirement for farmers; coordinate and make them easier and provide incentives for agriculture such as market research, credit and seeds provisions, knowledge transfer; capacity building and human resource development; and coordinate to establish the farmers’ associations to evaluate products in the future.

The Minister stated that MoAFF will also conduct training for farmers and encourage them in promoting the use of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), Family Animal Feedings, Family Fishes Feeding, agricultural machineries and agricultural materials recycling so they will able to produce their qualified products in the future. He added that his ministry will also provide loans for farmers for their agriculture business and to seek markets for them to sell their products inside and outside the country. ///